machines – Dezeenhttps://www.dezeen.com
architecture and design magazineFri, 09 Dec 2016 13:24:12 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.6.1Wooden machine produces "handwritten" version of Bodoni typefacehttps://www.dezeen.com/2016/12/05/sooji-lee-design-academy-eindhivon-graduate-how-to-write-bodoni-lowercase-typeface-machine/
https://www.dezeen.com/2016/12/05/sooji-lee-design-academy-eindhivon-graduate-how-to-write-bodoni-lowercase-typeface-machine/#respondMon, 05 Dec 2016 06:00:48 +0000https://admin.dezeen.com/?p=1014815Design Academy Eindhoven graduate Sooji Lee has created a hand-operated machine that painstakingly rewrites the Bodoni typeface in lowercase. Lee deconstructed the lowercase letters of the Bodoni type – a serif face created in the late eighteenth century – and reduced it to 26 individual elements. This included the serifs that form the top and bottom

Lee deconstructed the lowercase letters of the Bodoni type – a serif face created in the late eighteenth century – and reduced it to 26 individual elements.

This included the serifs that form the top and bottom of the alphabet and the stems and bowls that make up the rounded letters such as o, e, c and b.

Neither a or g contain any elements that overlap with other letters, so were created as standalone elements.

The designer then built a pedal-operated wooden machine complete with a pen, along with a set of "maps" the operator follows to recreate each Bodoni letter.

"Typefaces are really close to our daily life, but actually we cannot realise them without a computer because they are originally invented for the purpose of mass printing production," said the designer.

"We usually say 'I'm writing' when we type, even though it is not an actual behaviour of writing but just pushing the button. I decided, literally, to write a certain typeface."

Recreating a single letter a with the writing tool requires 74 strokes, 60 curves, and two different widths and directions of the pen. Lee spent two hours writing the

Lee spent two hours writing the a on her first attempt – which took 43 pedal steps – but says with practice she's reduced the time to 30 minutes.

"We can reproduce an infinite quality of identical letters of a with the push of a button," she said. "The letter a in my project takes a long time, and the results will have all different shapes, depending on the speed of the hand and the spread of ink."

]]>https://www.dezeen.com/2016/12/05/sooji-lee-design-academy-eindhivon-graduate-how-to-write-bodoni-lowercase-typeface-machine/feed/0Charlotte Nordmoen's Humanmade robot designer could replace pottershttps://www.dezeen.com/2016/07/10/humanmade-charlotte-nordmoen-robot-potter-central-saint-martins-graduate-2016/
https://www.dezeen.com/2016/07/10/humanmade-charlotte-nordmoen-robot-potter-central-saint-martins-graduate-2016/#commentsSun, 10 Jul 2016 08:00:32 +0000http://admin.dezeen.com/?p=928709Graduate shows 2016: Central Saint Martins student Charlotte Nordmoen has designed a robotic potter that anticipates a time when human labour is no longer needed (+ movie). The prototype device has a "human finger" made from silicone attached to a mechanical arm. The implement is used to shape clay in much the same way a real finger

The prototype device has a "human finger" made from silicone attached to a mechanical arm. The implement is used to shape clay in much the same way a real finger would.

The system relies on a design programme that uses machine learning and an algorithm to generate its own creations.

The software gathers images of vases online and interprets their outlines as basic, common shapes to create a "DNA of vases".

It then combines features together to create a new vase that mixes contrasting traits from different designs. Currently the robot has no feedback mechanism, however, so it's unable to learn from mistakes or improve on its designs.

]]>https://www.dezeen.com/2016/07/10/humanmade-charlotte-nordmoen-robot-potter-central-saint-martins-graduate-2016/feed/8Shawn Yang uses giant Spirograph to make home accessorieshttps://www.dezeen.com/2016/06/22/shawn-yang-giant-spirograph-lab-machine-home-accessories-homeware-graduate-design/
https://www.dezeen.com/2016/06/22/shawn-yang-giant-spirograph-lab-machine-home-accessories-homeware-graduate-design/#respondWed, 22 Jun 2016 17:42:29 +0000http://admin.dezeen.com/?p=921589Graduate shows 2016: Taiwanese designer Shawn Yang has created a giant version of a Spirograph toy that makes three-dimensional patterns on homeware (+ slideshow). The Spirograph Lab is based on a toy of the same name, which is used to draw petal-shaped concentric patterns using interlocking plastic cogs and toothed rings to guide a pen.

The Spirograph Lab is based on a toy of the same name, which is used to draw petal-shaped concentric patterns using interlocking plastic cogs and toothed rings to guide a pen.

Yang, an industrial design student who recently graduated from Taiwan's Shih Chien University, created the machine to allow the two-dimensional Spirograph pattern to be turned into a three-dimensional object.

The Lab features a tall, wooden workstation with a motor and integrated storage for the cogs. Attached to the side is a table for mixing resin.

To create the patterns, a smaller cog piece is first loaded into a larger cog-shaped cutout. The cog is connected by magnets to an air-pressurised container filled with liquid resin.

When the Lab's motor is switched on, the cog spins, and its magnetically connected container shoots resin in a corresponding pattern of concentric circles or ovals.

The resin falls onto a circular platform below, where an existing item of homeware or a piece of fabric is sat to capture the design. The process can be repeated with many layers of resin.

The use of magnets is a departure from the traditional Spirograph.

"In the past, the pattern was changed using lots of holes on the gears," Yang said. "I redesigned it by using magnets, which can reduce restrictions and are also easier to operate."

During experimentation, Yang altered different variables – including total operation time and the stiffness of the resin – to create a number of patterns.

Yang then began layering the resin patterns to create lampshades, candleholders, bowls and plates.

The Spirograph Lab is designed to allow users to enjoy the process of making, not just the finished product.

"The production line is a low-tech process which retains the pleasure in manual operation," said Yang. "At the same time, it also uncovers the process of manufacturing – to create an object by drawing."

]]>https://www.dezeen.com/2016/06/22/shawn-yang-giant-spirograph-lab-machine-home-accessories-homeware-graduate-design/feed/0Dave Hakkens updates open-source Precious Plastic recycling machineshttps://www.dezeen.com/2016/04/14/dave-hakkens-updates-open-source-precious-plastic-recycling-machines/
https://www.dezeen.com/2016/04/14/dave-hakkens-updates-open-source-precious-plastic-recycling-machines/#respondThu, 14 Apr 2016 20:00:55 +0000http://admin.dezeen.com/?p=884047Dutch designer Dave Hakkens has updated his series of Precious Plastic machines, which anyone can build and use to make products by recycling the material (+ movie). Blueprints for the new machines, which the designer described as "a solution to plastic pollution", are now available online for anyone to download and build. The devices are

Blueprints for the new machines, which the designer described as "a solution to plastic pollution", are now available online for anyone to download and build.

The devices are made using everyday materials and basic tools that Hakkens said are available all over the world.

The set includes a plastic shredder, an extruder, an injection moulder and a rotation moulder, which can each ne used to turn waste plastic into new products. Hakkens first showed prototype versions at the Design Academy Eindhoven graduation show in 2013, and has spent the last two years refining the designs.

Hakkens has used the Precious Plastic machines to create chopping boards, bowls, clipboards and plant pots that feature a distinctive mottled pattern of colours – all from waste material.

By making the blueprints downloadable, Hakkens hopes others can become a "craftsman of plastic", helping to clean up local neighbourhoods and start their own business.

"The big plastic industry prefers to work with new plastic," added Hakkens. "Recycled plastic might slow down production or damage their machines. And people haven’t got the machines to start themselves."

]]>https://www.dezeen.com/2016/04/14/dave-hakkens-updates-open-source-precious-plastic-recycling-machines/feed/0Wintergatan Marble Machine plays music with metal ballshttps://www.dezeen.com/2016/03/10/marble-music-machine-wintergatan-martin-molin/
https://www.dezeen.com/2016/03/10/marble-music-machine-wintergatan-martin-molin/#commentsThu, 10 Mar 2016 06:00:30 +0000http://admin.dezeen.com/?p=863807Thousands of metal marbles tumble through this wooden contraption by Swedish musician Martin Molin, which is operated with gears to produce different sounds and create tunes (+ movie). Molin and his team built the Wintergatan Marble Machine from birch plywood, wire and Lego Technic pieces, and incorporated a range of musical elements. Spinning a handle on one

Once the first lever is pulled, the marbles are released so they fall onto vibraphone keys in a specific sequence, creating a tune.

The timing of each release is dictated by a programmed wheel that rotates underneath.

A series of Lego pegs sticking up from the circumference flick the bottom of elements that hold the marbles in place, allowing one ball to pass each time.

"The programming wheel is limited to a 32-bar loop, so the vibraphone repeats itself playing the exact same thing over and over," said Molin. "So the trick was to make this more dynamic by altering the harmony using a new bass line on the second revolution of the loop."

"I think this creates a somewhat captivating effect; a lot is happening but at the same time very little," he added.

Activating another gear releases an intermittent stream onto a disk, which produces a snare-drum sound every time it is hit.